Knife-blade sharpener



H. BRIX Dec. 16,1924. 1,519,661

H.. BRIX KNIFE BLADE SHARPENER FiledJa 1924 a Sheets-Sheet 2 M I; mum

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Dec. H. BRIX KNIFE BLADE SHARPENER Filed Jan. 28, 1924 3 Sheets-Sheet -5 Patented Dec. 16, 1924.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. I

HAROLD BRIX, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO SHARP &, SMITH, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

KNIFE-BLADE SHARPENER.

Application filed January 28, 1924. Serial No. 689,045.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, I-IAnoLD BRIX, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Knife-Blade Sharpener, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in knife blade sharpeners, and more especially to a device adapted for sharpening thin flexible blades such as are used on detachable blade knives. Such blades frequently have the cutting edge curved at one end; and my improved sharpener is adapted to sharpen this curved part of the edge in addition to the straight part. By the use of my device a blade may be quickly and easily sharpened with great accuracy. Other features and advantages of my invention will appear more fully as I proceed with the specification.

In that form of device embodying the features of my invention shown in the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view in side elevation, Fig. 2 is a top plan View, Fig. 3 is a view taken as indicated by the line 3 of Fig. 1, Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view similar to Fig. 3 showing the knife holder rocked to bring the cutting edge of a knife blade in contact with one of the emery-wheels, Fig. 5 is a view of the knife blade holder taken as indicated by the line 5 of Fig. 4, and Fig. (3 is a view of a detachable blade adapted to be sharpened on my improved knife blade sharpener.

As shown in the drawings, the device comprises a suitable pedestal or support mounted in any convenient manner on a table or bench 11.. Mounted on the base 10 are two emery-wheels 12 and 13 carried by shafts 14 and 15 respectively, which are retatably supported in suitable bearings. The

- shafts 14 and 15 carry belt wheels 16 and 17 respectively, by means of which the emerywheels 12 and 13 may be rotated in a well known manner. In operation, the emerywheels 12 and 13 are preferably rotated in opposite directions as indicated by the arrows in Fig. 3. The bearings carrying the shafts 14 and 15 are formed on the upper ends of supports 18 and 19 which are provided with slots 20 and 21, respectively, at their bases, through which extend the cap screws 22 and 23 which are threaded into the top plate 24 of the base 10. The slots 20 and 21 permit sliding adjustment of the emery-wheels 12 and 13 towardand away from each other, and screws 25 and 26 are provided to assist in giving the emerywheels the desired position. Tightening of the cap screws 22 and 23 holds the emerywheels tightly in place when they are adjusted to the desired position. H

Slidably and rockably mounted on the base 10 is a round shaft 30 which is arranged somewhat below the emery-wheels 12 and 13 and between them. The shaft 30 is carried by the journals 31 and 32. Between the journals 31 and 32, there is mounted on the shaft 30 a knife blade holder 33 which will be described more in detail hereinafter. The knife blade holder is adapted to hold a thin flexible blade such as is shown in Fig. 1?. The blade I have indicated in general )y portion of its cutting edge straight as indicated by 35 and a portion at one end curved as indicated by 36. \Vhen the blade is in position in the holder 33 and the holder itself is in its normal position as shown in Fig. 1, and as shown by the solid lines in Fig. 5, the straight part of the edge 35 is horizontal and at a height substantially equal to the axes of the two emery-wheels 12 and 13. The shaft 30 is adapted to be rocked in the journals 31 and 32 to bring the edge 35 in contact with the grinding surfaces of the two emery-wheels 12 and 13. As shown in'Fig. 4, the shaft 30 is rocked to bring the cutting edge of the blade 34 into contact with the grinding periphery of the emerywheel. 13. The shaft 30' is provided with a handle 40 at one end and a handle 41 at the other. By means of these handles the shaft can be slid back and forth and rocked in or-. der to sharpen both sides of the straight part of the edge 35 of the blade. At one end of the shaft 30 there is fastened a collar 42 with a depending arm 43 extending through a recess 44 in the extension 45 on the support 10. This arm 43 is adapted to engage the ends of two screws 46 and 47. as shown in order to limit the rocking of the shaft 30 as desired. The screws 46 and 47 are ordinarily adjusted outwardly far enough so as to permit the shaft 30 to be rocked sufliciently to bring the edge of a blade in the blade holder into contact with the emery-wheels 12 and 13 in order to sharpen the same on both sides of the edge.

It will be seen that'this blade has a I willnow describe more in detail the bladeholder 33. This holder comprises a collar 48 held in place by means of a set screw a9 and provided with, two-fiat parallelplates 50 and 51 between which is pivotall y supported another plate 52 on the pivot 53. The plate 52 is provided at its upper edge with a slot 54 in which the knife blade 34 is adapted to fit. There is provided a smallpin 56 adapted to be engaged by the notch 57'ontheknife blade and a pin 58 is inserted-in the holder as shown after the knife blade 34 is in position. The pin 58 and the pin 56 hold the knife blade securely in posi'tioni-n the-holder. The plate 52 is adapted to rock on the pivot 53. I'Vhen the blade 3% is inposition the curved edge 36 forms the arc of acircle having the pivot point 53 as its center. liltinged lyatta'ched to the lower edgeof theplate 52- is a rod 60 extending parallel to'the shaft 30 and provided with a collar 6-1 having an upwardly projecting arm 62. Pivot-ally supported at 63 on the under side of' anextension- 64 attached to the support It) is a bell crank having an upwardly extending arm 65 provided with a loop 66 encircling the shafts 30'and rod 60. The bell crank is also provided with a horizontal arm '67 as shown. The arm 67 is adapted to be pulled downwardly in any suitable manner as by hand or by means of a suitable foot pedal-and connections (not shown) to-roc-l'; the; bell crank. When the arm 67 is pulled downwardly, the loop 66 engages the=arm- 62 to pull the rod 60 to the left (as "viewedi n -Figs. 1, 2 and 5). Moving the rod 60 to' the left in this manner operates to rock-the plate 52 in the blade holder from the position shown by the solid lines in Fig. '40

the same figure. The rod- 60 is normally held in the position shown by the solid lines 5 tothe position shown by the broken lines in Fig.5 means of a spiral spring 80 arranged between the: collar 81' on the rod 60 anel the arm 82 projecting upwardly from the" collar 83 011 the shaft 30". The bell crank is normally held in the position shown in -Fig. 1 by ineans 'of the spiral spring 84.

The handle 41 on one end of the shaft 30 is prov-ided with a detent 86 adapted to enthe journal 31 to prevent sliding movement of the shaft 30" to the left except when such detent isreleased. The plate 52 of the knife holder is provided with a stop 88 as sho-wnto limit the rocking movement thereof,ai id a: screw 89 is provided for this stop 88' to bear against. Ad]ustment of the screw 89 permits rocking of the plate 52 to the desired point.

The operation of the device can now be understood. The knife blade 34: is put in place in the knife holder and the pin 58 inserted to hold the same securely in position. -T he detent 86: is thenreleaseda'nd the shaft '30" rocked to bring one side of the straightpart of the edge 35 of'the blade in contact with one of the emery-wheelsr The shaft is then slid to the left (as viewed in Fig. 1) to sharpen this edge. The shaft is then rocked to the other side and the shaft slid back to sharpen the other side of the straight part of the. edge: The detent 86 is then permitted to engage the journal 31 and prevent further sliding of the shaft 30. The shaft 30 is then again rocked to one side to bring one side 'of the cutting edge of the blade in contact with one of the emery-wheels, and the arm 67 is then pulled down. This moves the arm 66 into contact with the arm52 to pull the rod 60 to cause a rocking of the plate 52 to rock the knife blade to cause the curved part of its cutting edge 36 to pass over the grinding surface of one of the emery-wheels-, thus sharpening the curved part of the edge. The shaft 39 isthenrocked to the other side and the arm 67 slowly released whereupon the spring 80 forces the rod 60 back to cause the plate to-rock back again, thns sharpening the other side of the curved part of the edge 36'. In thismanner, it will] be noted that both sides of the straight part and both sides of the curved: part of the cutting edge of the blade 34 may be sharpened. While I have shown and described. certain embodiments of my invention, it is to be understood that it is capable of many modifications. Changes, therefore, in the construction and arrangement may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as disclosed inthe appended claims, in which it is my intention to claim all novelty inherent in my invention .as broadly as possible in view of theprior art.

WVhat I claim asnew, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. A device of the character described comprisingtwo abrasive wheels, means for supporting a knife blade between the abrasive wheels, means for rocking the. knife blade to bring one side of its cutting edge into contact with the grinding surface of one abrasive wheel or the other side of its cutting edge into contact with the grinding surface of the other abrasive wheel, means for sliding the knife blade to draw the straight portion of its cutting edge across the grinding-surface of either abrasive wheel while in contact therewith, and means for rocking the knife blade in order to draw the carved portion of its cutting edge'across the grinding surface of either abrasive wheel while in contact therewith.

2. A device of the character described comprising two abrasive wheels lying in a plane with their grinding surfaces adjacent, a slidable and rockable shaft parallel to the axes of the abrasive wheels and ar ranged between and below the same,. a knife blade holder supported on said shaft whereby a knife blade-held in such holder may be slid back and forth in a direction parallel to the axes of the abrasive wheels or rocked back and forth in the plane of the abrasive wheels, and means for rocking the knife blade in the holder in a plane substantially at right angles to the plane of the abrasive wheels.

3. A device of the character described comprising two abrasive wheels lying in a plane with their grinding surfaces adjacent, a slidable and rock-able shaft parallel to the axes of the abrasive wheels and arranged between and below the same. a knife blade holder supported on said shaft whereby a knife blade held in such holder may be slid back and forth in a direction parallel to the axes of the abrasive wheels or rocked back and forth in the plane of the abrasive wheels, and means for rocking the knife blade in the holder in a plane substantially at right angles to the plane of the abrasive wheels, said means comprising a knife blade supporting plate pivotally mounted in the knife blade holder.

4-. A device of the character described comprising two abrasive wheels lying in a plane with their grinding surfaces adjacent, slidable and rock-able shaft parallel to the axes of the abrasive wheels and arranged between and below the same, a knife blade holder supported on said shaft whereby a knife blade held in such holder may be slid back and forth in a direction parallel to the axes of the abrasive wheels or rocked back and forth in the plane of the abrasive wheels, means for rocking the knife blade in the holder in a plane substantially at right angles to the plane of the abrasive wheels, a rod hingedly connected thereto, and means for pulling said rod to rock said blade.

5. A device of the character described comprising two abrasive wheels lying in a plane with their grinding surfaces adjacent, a slidable and rockable shaft parallel to the axes of the abrasive wheels and arranged between and below the same, a knife blade holder supported on said shaft whereby a knife blade held in such holder may he slid back and forth in a direction parallel to the axes of the abrasive wheels or rocked back and forth in the plane of the abrasive wheels, means for holding the slidable and rockable shaft to prevent the same from sliding, and means for rocking the knife blade in the holder in a plane substantially at right angles to the plane of the abrasive wheels.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal this 9 day of January, A.

HAROLD BRIX. [1 s.] 

